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USDA Farm to Table
ICYMI, here's what happened last week at USDA:
This week, our focus on the nation’s rural communities takes a look at a few of the ways USDA is helping create rural jobs and opportunities that are responsive to a 21st century economy and help to build a sustainable economic future for rural America.
A new report released by USDA last week shows that in 2013, the biobased industry contributed $369 billion and 4 million jobs to the American economy. This new report is the first to quantify the economic activity surrounding the biobased products industry and points to the positive impact our investments have had on jobs and the economy in rural communities. Changes in the 2014 Farm Bill will create additional opportunities for the renewable plant-based materials industry, enabling continued growth and investment in this successful program.
Deputy Secretary Harden traveled to the Rochester Public Market in New York to visit with local farmers about the importance of both urban and rural agriculture. While there, she took the opportunity to discuss what USDA is doing to cultivate a new generation of farmers and ranchers. And in op-eds in papers in Missouri, Massachusetts, Virginia and Ohio she detailed investments that USDA is making across the country to help local food businesses grow. In the past two years alone, USDA has made more than 500 investments in food hubs, local processing facilities and distribution networks.
And to boost economic opportunities for rural cooperatives, we are accepting applications for grants to help rural coops develop new markets for their products and services. This access to capital will help cooperatives in rural areas get started, expand, and boost sales, marketing and business. For additional information, and to find out if you are eligible, see the June 15, 2015 Federal Register or contact the USDA Rural Development State Office.
In case you missed it last week, this is how we’ve been celebrating USDA from Farm to Table.
The Week in Pictures
All images available in Flickr.
On the USDA Blog
Experiencing the Hope, Surprise and Joy of Homeownership in Delaware
I wake up every day excited to work for an agency that gives rural American families three intangible gifts through homeownership: hope, surprise and joy.They experience a sense of hope when they find there are affordable options to become homeowners. They surprise themselves by doing the incredible amount of work it takes to literally build the dream, and they experience unbounded joy when they move into their own home.
Celebrating a Long History of Ingenuity at the National Maker Faire
For hundreds of years, agriculture has fostered a community of “makers” – people who have engineered the tools that ensure a steady, abundant supply of food and fiber under a wide variety of conditions. From the invention of the cotton gin in 1793, Mason jars in 1858, the gasoline tractor in 1892, to the current use of “big data” and genetic tools, the agriculture industry has made huge leaps and bounds in technology and engineering.
USDA Federal Marketing Orders Help Reduce Food Waste
USDA’s Food Waste Challenge is underway and federal marketing orders for fruits and vegetables continue to help out in the food donation effort. Under these industry self-help programs that are overseen by the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), groups decide minimum quality standards that benefit the entire industry. When products do not meet a marketing order’s quality standards but are still edible, they can be diverted to secondary markets to minimize food waste while increasing producer returns.
Protecting Pollinators through Habitat Conservation is Critical to Preserving Food Supply
“They’re in a happy mood today,” Jim Pratt, a local apiarist, said. At a comfortable 62 degrees, honeybees buzz with a clear objective: collect nectar and pollen, for honey and pollination. “Pollinators, like honeybees, support food crops,” Pratt said, explaining why for 20 years he’s raised honeybees.
Talking All Things Produce at the United Fresh Convention & Expo
The saying goes that change is the only thing that is constant. That certainly is the case in the produce industry where businesses are always looking to streamline processes and introduce new products to the market. Since my agency — the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) — provides services that facilitate marketing opportunities for the industry, it is imperative for us to be nimble and constantly look for ways to strengthen our connection with industry leaders. One of the ways we do this is by attending conferences like last week’s United Fresh Convention & Expo in Chicago, Ill.
Partnerships Bring Rural Health Care to South Dakota
“We wouldn’t be all that we are today if it weren’t for USDA”, said Verne Hansen, Board President of the Faulkton Area Medical Center (FAMC). With help from Rural Development, South Dakota, FAMC leveraged $5 million in loans and loan guarantees to build a state-of-the-art 12-bed facility serving as the Critical Access Hospital for Faulkton (population 744) and the surrounding community. This new facility has yielded a 500% increase in patient revenues and improved the level of care. Due to overwhelming demand, FAMC is planning an expansion to continue meeting the health care needs of rural South Dakotans.
USDA TV
USDA Week in Review - June 19th, 2015
Urban Agriculture in New York City
Read about us in the News
USDA Program Promotes Products Such as Plant-Based Bottles (AP/The New York Times)
A program designed to promote ethanol and biodiesel fuels will be expanded to companies using plant-based plastic, rubber and fiber in manufacturing products such as bottles and packaging, the U.S. Agriculture Department said on Wednesday. The USDA is proposing in a new agency rule to add manufacturers of these plant-based products to a loan guarantee program that has provided more than $844 million for 10 biofuel projects since 2008.
Bio-made products grow opportunities for MS (The Clarion-Ledger)
Mississippi is the top state in the U.S. for the production of bio-made products, according to a study the United States Department of Agriculture released Tuesday. The study, conducted for the USDA by outside university researchers, analyzed the relative employment contribution of the bioeconomy in every state to its national share of the U.S. economy.
USDA says backing push to expand "bio-economy" (Reuters)
CHICAGO, June 17 (Reuters) - The productivity and innovation of U.S. agriculture is driving a transformation to bio-based products across the economy that is supporting millions of jobs and significantly displacing fossil fuels, according to a study from the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Wednesday. "We need to think more broadly, beyond fuel and energy, that there is an amazing opportunity in chemicals, in enzymes, in bio-plastic materials, in forest products," USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack said in an interview.
New USDA Search Tool Helps You Find A Farmers Market Near You (Huffington Post)
Are you looking for a farmers market in Missoula, Montana that sells both eggs and cut flowers? How about one in Birmingham, Alabama that accepts food stamps? Or one to visit while on vacation in Sitka, Alaska?The government is here to help. The U.S. Department of Agriculture just launched a great new section on its website that lets you search a national directory of farmers markets to find exactly the one you're looking for.
Cabinet members hear from urban Indian community in Maryland (Indianz)
Two members of President Barack Obama's Cabinet joined a roundtable discussion on Monday to explore ways to better serve urban Native communities. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack visited Native American Lifelines in the heart of Baltimore as part of a day-long trip to the largest city in Maryland. Topics included urban gardening, improving nutrition in schools and integrating Native culture and history into the curriculum.
New program doubles buying power for fresh foods (The New Orleans Advocate)
As obesity becomes a growing issue across the nation, especially among low-income families, a local nonprofit organization is working to improve the eating habits of residents in St. Tammany Parish by making locally grown, fresh produce accessible and affordable for users of food stamps. “We can help redirect the dietary habits of a lot of people,” said Michael Norman, executive director of the Abita Grows Initiative and the manager of the Abita Springs Farmers Market. “Instead of spending their benefits on Twinkies and cookies, they’re buying carrots and cucumbers.”The new organization, Abita Grows Initiative, has partnered up with the Abita Springs Farmers Market to launch the Double Value Coupon Program, an incentive program that doubles the value of food stamps when they are used to buy fresh fruits and vegetables at the farmers market.
Food Hubs Could Be Revolutionary -- But They're Not as Simple as They Seem (Huffington Post)
When we heard Ann Karlen, executive director of Fair Food in Philadelphia, give a talk called "Wait, Wait -- Don't Start That Food Hub," we knew we were looking at a genuine trend. If you're working in the food systems field, it suddenly seems like everyone and their brother is starting a food hub. Even the mainstream media has taken notice (see this recent AP story). On the one hand, that's a great thing. Food hubs -- enterprises that actively manage the aggregation, distribution and marketing of source-identified foods from local and regional producers -- could be the key link in a new supply chain that fixes our broken food system.
Fresh From Farms to Schools -- It Just Makes Sense (Huffington Post)
As the person in charge of ordering food for the Dallas school system, Dora Rivas certainly knew that the fruits and vegetables provided to her students came from farms. She just didn't know which farms. Or, more specifically, where those farms were located. Near Dallas? In Texas, even? Those questions came up almost three years ago when her team applied for a federal Farm to School grant to help pay for locally-grown produce to be delivered to schools. What's happened since has changed everything from the way kids are learning to what they are eating. Educators have happily learned some lessons, too. The result is a better, healthier school district, as well as recognition from their peers in the form of awards and invitations to share their best practices.
Listen
LATEST USDA EFFORTS TO ADVANCE BIOBASED PRODUCTS INDUSTRY
Broadcast Date: Wed, June 17, 2015
The Agriculture Department announces new and expanded ways to build up our nation's biobased products industry and its contributions to the economy. (Rod Bain and Secretary Tom Vilsack)
USDA WORKING TO FURTHER CUT ERROR RATES IN SCHOOL MEAL PROGRAMS
Broadcast Date: Wed, June 17, 2015
The Agriculture Department has a new tool to reduce the already shrinking rates of errors in the administration of its School Lunch and Breakfast programs. (Gary Crawford and Secy' Tom Vilsack)
FDA TAKING ACTION TO REMOVE MAIN SOURCE OF TRANS FAT IN FOODS
Broadcast Date: Tue, June 16, 2015
FDA is ordering food makers to stop putting into their products one major source of trans fat. (Gary Crawford and Secy' Tom Vilsack)
ARC-PLC ENROLLMENT PERIOD RUNS THIS SUMMER
Broadcast Date: Tue, June 16, 2015
Wednesday is the first day producers enrolled in either the Agricultural Risk Coverage or Price Loss Coverage programs can sign their annual contracts. (Rod Bain and Farm Service Agency Administrator Val Dolcini)
FSA PROGRAMS ASSISTING IN SOUTHERN PLAINS FLOOD RECOVERY
Broadcast Date: Mon, June 15, 2015
Local Farm Service Agency offices in Texas, Oklahoma and other flood impacted areas of the Southern Plains have programs available to help in recovery efforts. (Rod Bain and FSA Administrator Val Dolcini)
Share
A new report shows the #biobased industry contributes $369B & 4M jobs to US economy http://t.co/JL8HoNXjfr #RuralMade pic.twitter.com/gCHsSlkja5
— Dept. of Agriculture (@USDA) June 17, 2015
Check out #MyPlate Northeast! What foods are local to you? http://t.co/wnCPyErAG9 #LocalMade pic.twitter.com/UAV5zMiBey
— ChooseMyPlate.gov (@MyPlate) June 16, 2015
John Bolton shows Dep Sec Harden heirloom tomatoes & his hydroponics operation in Rochester, NY #newfarmers pic.twitter.com/Jvhqa0gMjF
— USDA Press Team (@USDAPress) June 16, 2015
MAP: Impact of the biobased industry on states across U.S. The data → http://t.co/rWvV2DTBC6 pic.twitter.com/6r6fFPtNSZ
— BioPreferred Program (@BioPreferred) June 18, 2015
